Although demographics play a role, it's more about trying to leverage any local knowledge I have that might give me an edge on the bigger players who are sweeping up properties.

How sellers can be harmed usually doesn't cross the minds of new players as they don't look beyond the transaction they are dealing in, there's much more to it.

They will only do 80% LTV of contract price or appraisal (whichever is less) by the letter of their policies, but on our last deal (4 months ago) the one did 80% LTV of appraised value, which came in significantly higher than contract price, giving us about $20k cash out for remodeling expenses.It is certainly a touch-and-go market with the well-established players who have good credit and a clean history still able to do deals.

Poker players call it rat holing.Everyone of your choices is incredibly valid and incredibly wrong depending on the market.  10 years is probably way into another market. 

Before one puts a nail in a stud or even puts an offer in on a property, they need to understand who are the key players in a Real Estate Investing team.

This will allow you to engage with people in your market as well as people interested in your area(s) of expertise.I also like putting in searches on the Bigger Pockets search bar for "Queens, New York" to see who are some of the local players I haven't yet connected with.A few other things; post regularly on these forums, comment on blog posts, try to make a few new connections each week.

I do agree that starting with one of the bigger players is probably going to be the best way to learn and grow your business initially.

Something Goolge takes seriously.Needs to be fast.And it needs to be authoritative.If you look at it that way, then no it doesnt matter who it is as long as it is used correctly.Looking at it from an other perspective, choosing investor Carrot for example, you can rest assured, they are fast, reputable, and mobile optimized.Getting a wix site.. or a wordpress site.... you just are not a very serious player.

I have an excellent can-do attitude, I’m proactive, analytical, a team player, and I’m eager to learn.Specifically, I’m trying to get more into multi-family real estate, and books & other electronic resources can only teach me so much.

@Joe Cinosky could you be a bit more specific about what you mean by "major player"?